How To Heat Your Tiny Home
There are many options to consider when figuring out how to heat your tiny home. Ensuring that you choose and install the correct heater is crucial to staying warm throughout the winter months.
Overlooking this seemingly simple step in the process can lead you and your family to spending long winters bundled up under a blanket instead of enjoying the comfort and simplicity your tiny home has to offer. Continue reading to learn about the best ways to heat your tiny house.
Heating Options For A Tiny Home
Before choosing your , it's important to consider the size and cost of the heating unit. Having an understanding of how many BTU's your space will need is the first step. A BTU is a standard unit of measurement in the HVAC industry and it's important to know this number so you can compare which heaters to purchase.
To find out your rooms BTU load, use this BTU calculator. Before using the calculator you'll need to know the insulation R-values, floor to ceiling height measurements, and the temperature difference between what you want your inside to be and the temperature of a cold day. Once you have the BTU number from the calculator you can start looking at tiny home heater options.
Electric Heater Options
If your tiny home is "on-the-grid", then a mini-split system is a great choice to heat your space. Some advantages of a mini-split is that they're wall mounted, don't take up a lot of space, energy efficient, and are used for both heating and cooling! These seem to be the go-to for tiny home builders because of their simplicity and ease of installation.
Another option is your standard plug-in heater. There are an enormous amount of electric plug-in heaters to choose from so make sure the one you buy has a high safety rating and appropriate for your lifestyle. For example, you wouldn't want to buy one with exposed hot coils if you have young kids running around. There are also electric fireplaces, wall panels, plug-in baseboards, etc.
Off-grid Heater Options
For those of you who are living off the grid and do not have access to electricity, you'll need to consider more options than those with eletric heating. Solar panels are the most efficient and alternative form of power, however, it is very expensive to install. Realistically, these are the more common options you have for your home: wood/pellets or gas/propane. Wood as a heat source is is great however, it requires that someone be in the home to continually add wood to the stove to keep your house warm. An extended outing away from your tiny home means you could potentially come back to a very cold house in the winter. There is also the added worry that your pipes could freeze and burst, resulting in water damage.
The benefit of going with a propane heater vs. the wood stove is that you can set it and forget it. You can set your propane heater to whatever temperature you want, lock up your house and head out for the day or weekend. The disadvantage of the propane heater is that it's more expensive than a wood stove.
Things to consider:
If you want to know more about how to heat a tiny house or if you want to request a free estimate, contact our tiny home builders in Charlotte NC at (704) 607-9783. At Aldo's Restoration & Construction, we want to make sure that your tiny home stays warm all winter long!